Hi,
I went on holidays recently and shot a lot of mini dv footage as 4:3. About 2 months after I got back I managed to get a widescreen TV.
At this point I've been using the technique I descibe below to "crop" my 4x3 footage to to 16x9.
-Start a new 4x3 project
-Add footage to video track, do other exits/cuts transitions etc.
-Add crop filter set to 100% x 76%. If the action moves around on screen I can adjust the position of the crop so it's still on screen by addin extra diamonds on the line.
-Render footage as 4x3 from share
-use DVDpatcher to turn the 4x3 toggle into 16x9
-Use the bulit in menu dvd burner to make dvd (does not rerender if done correctly)
I get decent quality out of this, which I think makes sense as my old sony mini dv camcorder doesn't magically add pixels when footage is shot in 16x9 mode. It just crops.
Has anyone else had the problem of turning 4x3 into 16x9? I read about the overlay solution, but this doesn't allow me to ensure I've got onscreen what I want to keep.
Imiricol.
4x3 footage to 16x9
Moderator: Ken Berry
-
Trevor Andrew
Hi
Whichever way you convert 4:3 to 16:9 you will lose some of your video frame. Assuming that you don’t want distort the video.
If your camera records in 16:9 I assume it creates a border top and bottom, over the 4:3 simulating 16:9.
If you were to record in 16:9
Capture I assume can only be 4:3
Change the project properties to 16:9.
Use the overlay track to stretch the frame to remove the border, keeping the aspect ratio. You should end up with a 16:9 full frame.
I could not try this using my camera but used a still image of the correct size to simulate a frame and it appears to work.
My only doubt is how your camera records??????
I realise you may not be able to use this method on your existing footage, but give it a try recording to 16:9.
Trevor
Whichever way you convert 4:3 to 16:9 you will lose some of your video frame. Assuming that you don’t want distort the video.
If your camera records in 16:9 I assume it creates a border top and bottom, over the 4:3 simulating 16:9.
If you were to record in 16:9
Capture I assume can only be 4:3
Change the project properties to 16:9.
Use the overlay track to stretch the frame to remove the border, keeping the aspect ratio. You should end up with a 16:9 full frame.
I could not try this using my camera but used a still image of the correct size to simulate a frame and it appears to work.
My only doubt is how your camera records??????
I realise you may not be able to use this method on your existing footage, but give it a try recording to 16:9.
Trevor
-
Imiricol
Thanks Trevor,
My camera can record 16x9, but the existing footage is in 4x3, and captures as 4x3.
I don't mind losing a bit off the top and bottom, the holiday footage was mostly outside where I can lose some the sky. I figure this is a small price to pay to fill my 16x9 tv.
The overlay technique you describe is simple, only real drawback is that it's not flexible enough to move up and down within the 4x3 if I want to keep something in frame. There are pros and cons to each. As I see it
Overlay:
Pros
Easy to do
Does not allow you to edit on video track although you can create your whole project and run the overlay afterwards.
Cons
Cannot move within frame on it's own. Could cut out pieces of video and use pan & zoom, but it's hard to judge the result.
No transitions
Cropping
Pros
Can move within frame
Can edit on video track, transitions etc.
No longer to do than overlay
Cons
Some transitions may be distorted.
Photos inserted would be distorted.
I did give shooting a short native 16x9 video a try as per your suggestion. This captured as 16x9, and I created a DVD with it in it. Quality is indistinquishable for the 4x3 croped footage.
Thanks again
Imiricol.
My camera can record 16x9, but the existing footage is in 4x3, and captures as 4x3.
I don't mind losing a bit off the top and bottom, the holiday footage was mostly outside where I can lose some the sky. I figure this is a small price to pay to fill my 16x9 tv.
The overlay technique you describe is simple, only real drawback is that it's not flexible enough to move up and down within the 4x3 if I want to keep something in frame. There are pros and cons to each. As I see it
Overlay:
Pros
Easy to do
Does not allow you to edit on video track although you can create your whole project and run the overlay afterwards.
Cons
Cannot move within frame on it's own. Could cut out pieces of video and use pan & zoom, but it's hard to judge the result.
No transitions
Cropping
Pros
Can move within frame
Can edit on video track, transitions etc.
No longer to do than overlay
Cons
Some transitions may be distorted.
Photos inserted would be distorted.
I did give shooting a short native 16x9 video a try as per your suggestion. This captured as 16x9, and I created a DVD with it in it. Quality is indistinquishable for the 4x3 croped footage.
Thanks again
Imiricol.